Iceland in December with Camper

Mike3549

Hello everybody,

Does somebody have any experience on Iceland in December? For 3 full days and a half day. We're planning to get a camper. I see there are some decent campsites around Reykjavik, golden circle and south of ring road that are open all year round. The problem is, that we want to go to Vatnajokull glacier/ diamond beach. Which approx 3h drive from the side of golden circle (say selfoss camping) or 5h from blue lagoon or Reykjavik.

Our trip plan/list of must see/do things, in order of the trip:

1. Blue lagoon. On the first day, right after we land and collect a camper (or a car, if camper is a no-go).

2. Geysir/Strokkur. (Skipped the national park, not sure if its worth it)

3. Gulfoss. Close to geysir, so no brainer.

4. "Secret" hot springs/lagoons

5. Seljalandsfoss waterfall and Gljufrabui (5-10min walk from seljalandfoss)

6. Vatnajokull and Jokulsarlon.

7. Reykjavik.

And of course, the northern lights, which is not guaranteed.

With the limited daylight and all season campsites, unpredictable weather, my plan is to go to Vatnajokull on the very last day, leave the golden circle the evening before and drive as much as possible to skogar camping or even to skaftafell.

Or go there straight after blue lagoon on the first evening.

Any recommendations?

Previous experiences?

Would appreciate every opinion.

2 adults, 2 kids

Thank you

CrabRevolution

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058271777/iceland-in-december-with-camper

Sounds like a great trip, but I'd be very mindful of the time you're allowing yourself. We based ourselves in Reykjavik and drove to a few of the spots you mention, all well worth a trip (Strokkur, Gullfoss, Secret Lagoon). Reykjavik itself was cold though not frosty/snowy, but once we went inland the whole place was just frozen and covered in snow, with the roads only being one lane each direction and often indistinguishable from the surrounding land. I wouldn't have said it was dangerous (especially with winter tyres) but it definitely adds to the driving time, unless you're braver than me and fancy flying around the icy roads!

I'd also be very aware of how little daylight you'll have, especially in December. Could be better off picking a smaller number of stops and making sure you're enjoying them in daylight, than a higher number but it being dark. The hot springs might actually be nicer in the dark.

gypsy79

I would say change it to either a week and get great at driving in dark or best option move it to different time of year and change it to a week

I wouldnt dare do that in 3.5 days with 2 kids of any age. If you insist on 3.5 day trip, then change it to Faroes which is Iceland on steroids (so much smaller)

gypsy79

The sun rises at 11:15am and sets at 15:30 in mid December

Mike3549

Actually Reykjavik is not that important. We can skip this.

That leaves us blue lagoon on the first day.

Geysir/Strokkur, gulfoss and secret lagoon on day 2.

Seljalandsfoss on day 3 or 4.

Vatnajokull and Jokulsarlon still looks too tricky. Dont want to drive all day in the dark. Looks like will leave this for another year and will look into other caves.

Probably Katla or others. Might have time left for Reykjavik.

Thanks guys

Tabnabs

Wonder did the OP ever do this trip?

https://twitter.com/gislio/status/1605101711093338112

Mike3549

OP here, was thinking about posting an update. Thanks to this new weird virus circulating schools, we had to postpone our trip to mid-january. We were one day too late to cancel the camper for 50% refund or 85% voucher, at first said sorry, strict cancellation policy, but they were reasonable in the end and only charged us the price difference. Thanks for the tweet. Looks like this postponement was a big win for us. Will update next year.

Mike3549

Op update:

Sorry for such long delay.

I have to say, that was the best short break ever.

Extra 2 hours of daylight in mid January compared to December was a game changer.

In the end, we saw everything we wanted.

Here's our trip:

Day 1. Collected a campervan, did a little shopping and went to blue lagoon. And after that straight to the campsite on the golden circle close to geysir and gulfoss.

Day 2. Visited geysir/strokkur and gulfoss, had a nice burger and fish and chips at the geysir coffee shop, 'only' €18 each. Decided to skip the secret lagoon/ hot springs, it was -7⁰ outside and didn't want to waste a precious time of daylight. Went to Seljalandsfoss waterfall and Gljufrabui, but unfortunately the access to Gljufrabui was snowed in, but still managed to get a little peak to the inside through the little river. And then a nice 3h drive to skaftafell/Vatnajokull campsite.

And it was worth it.

The northern lights there were unreal, it was magical.

Day 3. Vatnajokull/Jokulsarlon, diamond beach. Missus went to blue ice caves with the oldest child, i had to stay in a jeep with the youngest one, cos it was wayyy too windy and dangerous. After that another 2-3h trip to a campsite next to skogafoss.

More northern lights.

Day 4. Explored the skogafoss and slowly started our trip towards Reykjavik/airport. At one point we saw some steam coming out of the ground and decided to make a short stop. There was a nice trail at the hveradalir geothermal area. A nice unexpected surprise. Still had some spare time and managed to get to Reykjavik and visit the church. Returned the camper and stayed the last night at the airport hotel.

Overall, it was one hell of a trip, not cheap, but worth every penny.

Heres a pic of northern lights in skaftafell campsite